Oklahoma Punter Michael Turk Lands Among Ray Guy Award Finalists

In just two seasons, the Arizona State transfer already owns several OU records and could be on his way to more.

John E. Hoover | Nov 21, 2022

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Oklahoma Sooners

NORMAN — Oklahoma punter Michael Turk on Monday was named one of 10 semifinalists for the 2022 Ray Guy Award.

The award goes to the top punter in college football and is presented by the Augusta Sports Council.

Turk is a sixth-year senior from Dallas who began his college career at Lafayette, then spent three years at Arizona State. He’s in his second year at OU, where he’s handled all the punting duties over the last two seasons.

Turk leads the Big 12 and ranks No. 4 in the nation with a 46.5-yard average. Of his 57 punts this season, 19 have have been downed inside the 20-yard line, while 47 of his punts were not returned (82%). The 10 punts that were returned only averaged 3.0 yards per runback. He has 18 50-yarders, including season-longs of 63 and 67 in Saturday’s 28-13 win over Oklahoma State.

Despite playing in just 22 games at OU, Turk is tied with Jack Jacobs for second in program history with 14 punts of 60 yards or more. (Tress Way holds the record of 16.)

Turk has punted 92 times as a Sooner for 4,442 yards (48.3 average). He set the single-season OU record last year when he averaged 51.2 yards per punt, smashing the previous record of 47.8 set by Jacobs in 1940.

Turk also became engaged after Saturday's win when OU softball shortstop Grace Lyons accepted his proposal on the field following the game.

Published Nov 21, 2022

JOHN E. HOOVER

John is an award-winning journalist whose work spans five decades in Oklahoma, with multiple state, regional and national awards as a sportswriter at various newspapers. During his newspaper career, John covered the Dallas Cowboys, the Kansas City Chiefs, the Oklahoma Sooners, the Oklahoma State Cowboys, the Arkansas Razorbacks and much more. In 2016, John changed careers, migrating into radio and launching a YouTube channel, and has built a successful independent media company, DanCam Media. From there, John has written under the banners of Sporting News, Sports Illustrated, Fan Nation and a handful of local and national magazines while hosting daily sports talk radio shows in Oklahoma City, Tulsa and statewide. John has also spoken on Capitol Hill in Oklahoma City in a successful effort to put more certified athletic trainers in Oklahoma public high schools. Among the dozens of awards he has won, John most cherishes his national "Beat Writer of the Year" from the Associated Press Sports Editors, Oklahoma's "Best Sports Column" from the Society of Professional Journalists, and Two "Excellence in Sports Medicine Reporting" Awards from the National Athletic Trainers Association. John holds a bachelor's degree in Mass Communications from East Central University in Ada, OK. Born and raised in North Pole, Alaska, John played football and wrote for the school paper at Ada High School in Ada, OK. He enjoys books, movies and travel, and lives in Broken Arrow, OK, with his wife and two kids.